Journal of Ecology and Conservation

ABSTRACT

In the present scenario, millions of tons of agricultural residue are annually produced from crops and other resources such as trees and grass. This biomass is usually burnt in an open atmosphere, causing environmental pollution. On the other hand, India has a huge demand for renewable energy resources. The briquetting of these crop residues may solve both problems along with providing some extra income to the farmers. In the present study, briquettes of the dry leaf, paddy straw, and dry grass were produced using starch as a binder by using an indigenously developed screw extruder. The produced briquettes properties were characterized by proximate analysis and ultimate analysis, fuel properties such as calorific value, and pollution analysis. The biomass briquette produced from dry leaf (3990.33 ± 32.96 kcal/kg) showed better calorific values compared to paddy straw (3455.67 ± 66.12 kcal/kg) and dry grass (3528.33 ± 55.19 kcal/kg) briquettes which may be used for cooking and other heating application.

Article History

KEYWORDS

1. Biomass
2. Briquette
3. Agro-residue
4. Briquette characterization
5. Bio-Energy in India
6. Secondary income